Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
BACKG~OUND OF THE INV-~TION
The present invention relates to a transmission cable
for use with an ultrasonic device such as an ultrasonic mach-
ining device and the like and, more ~articularly, to a trans-
mission cable of the type that comprises a plurality of fine
ires covered with a tubular member.
The conventional transmission cable used as a tr.~nsmiss-
ion medium.for an ultrasonic device has been made of a single
thick m~tallic wire. ~o:rever, this ~ind of cable has such
drawbacks that i~ is not always satisfactory in its wzy of
,~
transmitting ult~asonic oscillations efficiently to a terminal
machining tool coupled to the cable and, moreover, it lacks
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flexibility and is therefore inconvenient for carrying out
ultrasonic machining operations with the tool.
To overcome the above mentioned disadvantages of the
conventional transmission cable, the present inventors have
found, after experiments, that by use of a transmission
cable comprising a plurality of fine metallic wires covered
with a flexible tubular member, preferably that which is
filled with a liquid, the ultrasonic oscillations effected
by the ultrasonic device can be transmitted more efficiently
than otherwise to the terminal machining tool coupled to
the cable and further that this type of cable, since the
tubular member is made of a flexible material, is easy ~o
handle and therefore convenient for carrying out ultra-
sonic machining operations.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, an object of an aspect of the present
invention is to provide a new and improved transmission
cable for use with an ultrasonic device such as an ultra-
sonic machining device.
An object of an aspect of the present invention is
to provide a transmission cable of the type that comprises
a plurality of fine wires covered with a tubular member.
An object of an aspect of the present invention is to
provide a transmission cable adopted to transmit ultra-
sonic oscillations effected by the ultrasonic device to a
terminal machining tool coupled to the cable in an effic-
ient manner.
An object of an aspect of the present invention is to
provide a transmission cable which is flexible and conven-
ient for carrying out ultrasonic machining operations ~iththe terminal machining tool.
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An aspect of the invention is a s f ollows .
A transmission cable for the transfer of ultrasonic
vibration energy comprising a plurality of wires of equal
length extending between an ultrasonic vibration energy source
and a terminal working tool, and a flexible tubular member
for housing said wires, said wires passing through said tubu-
lar member in spaced apart relationships with one another
and said tubular member being filled with a liquid having a
viscosity of 1 to 150 centipoises, whereby lateral deflections
of said wires are suppressed.
A method for transferring ultrasonic vibration
energy through a plurality of wires between an ultrasonic
vibration energy source and a terminal working tool, com-
prising the steps of passing said wires in spaced apart
relationship through a flexible tubular member, maintaining
a li~uid having a viscosity of 1 to 150 centipoises in said
tubular mem~er, and suppressing lateral deflection of said
wires utilizing said liquid in said tubular member.
A method of suppressing lateral deflection of wires
used or transmitting ultrasonic vibration energy between an
ultrasonic vibration energy source and a terminal working
tool, comprising the steps of passing said wires through a
housing containing a liquid, and utilizing said liquid in
said housing to suppress lateral deflection of said wires
as the latter transmits ultrasonic vibration energy between
said ultrasonic vibration energy source and said terminal
warking tool.
In one embodiment the transmission cable of the
present inve-
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~ 5 ~ ~
ntio~ co~ riscs ~s,ellti;~lly ~ plur~lity of fine ~r/ire~ covere(l
with a tubular member. The tubular member may be made of 3 f'le-
xible heat resistant material and may be filled with ~ uid
throu~h ~hich -the wires pass so that the later~l vibrations
of the wires are suppressed to thereby promote transmission
efficienc~r of the cable~
B~I~F D~SC'RIPTIO~ ~F Tl-l~ DRA;-iINGS
The features and details of the present invention ~Jill be
more clearly apparent from the following description wit'n res~-
ect to its preferred embodiments when ta}cen in conjunction ~;.ith
the accompanyin~ drawings in which like parts are desinated
by like reference numerals, and in which:
Flg. l is ~ longitudinal sectional view of a first ~re.''e-
rred embodiment of -the present invention;
Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional vie~ of a second ?ref-
erred embodiment of same;
Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional vie-l of a third prefe-
rred embodiment of same;
Fig~ 4 is a longitudinal sectional viev/ of a fourth pre-
ferred embodiment of same; and
Fig. 5 is a graph sho~ing the transmission efficiency of
the cable according to the present invention plotted against
variations of the viscosity of a liquid filled into the cable.
~SCRIPTION OF TI~E P~EFERRE~ EMBOI)IM~NTS
Before ente~,ing into a specific description of the pref-
erred embodiment'~'of the present invention as shown in Figs.
l to 4, it is to be noted that the cable of the present inve-
_~ _
O6ntiOll c~ r ll~r co~ ?ri'.~ hl-ol;-`llout ~1! the embo(limc!l~c~
~1ur.1ity of` fine met.-lllic ;~ires 3 of eflual length covered
~ith .~ tubular member 4. ~ numeral 1 indicates ~n output ter-
minal of an ultrasonic oscillation generating- source coupled
to one end of the cable and a numeral 2 indicates an input
terminal of a terminal machining -tool coupled to the other
end of the cable. Each of said fine wires may preferably be
made of metal such as carbon steel having a diameter of about
0.3 to 2 mm. It is desirable that ~he diameter of each wire be
comparatively small in consideration of the fluctu~tion and
fall of the transmission efficiency of the cable, as well as
of its flexibility. On the contrary, it has been found after
experiments that in case the wire becomes too small in diameter
, the ]ater?~l vibrations become great and the ultrasonic osc-
illations effected by the ultrasonic device can not be trans-
mitted efficiently to the terminal machining tool. Therefore,
the optimum di3meter of the wire which satisfies the above
mentioned conditions in actual practice is in the range of
about 0.3 to 2 mm as aforesaid.
The tubular member 4 may preferably be made of a flexible
material such as synthetic rubber like silicone rubber, natural
rubber~ synthetic resins like fluorine-contained resin, gl2ss
fiber, cotton or jute. Further, it is desirable that the tubu-
lar member ha~e some degree of heat resistant property because
of the fact that the portions at which each wire 3 comes into
contact with the tubular member 4 -tend to become heated, due to
an ultrasonic energy, to a temperature as high as lOO-C.
,~'c
As shown in~Figs~ 2 and 4, the tubular member ~ may have
a plurality of hollow passages provided within , and extending
parallel to, the outer wall of the tubular member throughout
~ ~g~5
the entire leng-t'1 of the latter so that the ;ires 3 can in~
vidually pass throllgh said hollow passages a~d oscillate ther-
ewithin. Such a structure is particularly advantageous in that
the wires 3 are prevented from running against one another
when they vibrate in the lateral direction.
Fur-ther, as sho~m in Figs. 3 and 4, the tubul~r member ~,
or the hollow passages therewithin, may be filled with a suit-
able liouid 5 such as silicone oil so as to suppress the wlres
to vibrate in the lateral direction. The viscosity of the lio-
uid 5 may desirably be of 1 to 150 centipoise because, when
the viscosity of the liquid is too high, not only the lateral
vibrations of the wires 3 but also -the re~uired ultrasonic
oscillations thereof are suppressed. On the other hand, when
the viscosity is too low~ the la-teral vibrations of the wires
3 can not be suppressed enough and, therefore, the reauired
ultrasonic oscillations can not be transmitted efficiency to
the terminal machinin~ tool. In this case, it is recommendable
that since the li~uid 5 can not be completely sealed within
the tubular member 4 due to ultrasonic oscillations of the
wires 3, a fibrous filler material 6 be inserted into the
tubular member to thereby keep the leakage of the liauid from
both ends of the tubular member at a minimum.
The relationship between the viscosity of the linuid 5
~illed into -the tubular member 4 and the transmission effici-
ency of the cable is shown by a graph in Fi~.5~ As will be
understood from the graph, the optimum viscosity of the liq-
uid filled into ~he tubular member is in the range of about
5 to about 100 centipoise.
As a result of experiments conducted by the inventors
with respect to the above four embodiments, it has been found
, . . .
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th~t the t~ensr?i;e~ion cable ~s shown in ~ig. 1 is inierior o
that as shown in ~`ig. ~ in that in the ca~se of the former, the
wires 3 run against one anotller accompanied with disagreeable
metallic sounds during ultrasonic machining operations and,
moreover , the transmission efficiency of the cable decreases.
On the contrary, it has also been found that there is no dif-
ference in trc~nsmission efficiency between the tre~smicsion
cables as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. This is apparently due to
the existence of the liquid 5 (such as silicone oil) around
each of the wires 3 irrespective of whether the wires are hou-
sed within the sa~e single clearance in the tubular member or
housed individually within the plurality of passages therein
as shown. In conclusion, when the embodiments in ~igs. 1 to 4
are compared with one another, it can be said that the trans-
mission cables as shown in Figs. 3 and 4 are mos-t excellent
and then follow those as shown in Figs. 2 ~nd 1, respectively
in that order. For example, in the case of the transmission
cable as shown in Fig. 2 in which the tubular member 4 is not
filled with any liquid, the transmission efficienc~ thereof is
nearly e~lual to that of the cable in which the tubular member 4
is filled with the liquid 5 of about 0~2 centipoise in viscos-
ity when the graph in Fig~ 5 is referred to. However, it is
to be noted that even the transmission cable in Fi~. 1 i, far
more excellent than a cable which comprises only a plurality
of fine metallic wires with no tubular member surrounding same.
As described above, -the transmission cable of the presen-t
invention has v~rious advantages that since the lateral vibr-
;,~
ations of the w~es forming the cable are suppressed by the sp-
ecific structure of the tubular member surrounding the wires
or by the li~uid filled within the tubular member, the ultraso-
~ 112~L5~)6IllC oscilla-tlons o-'-the ~.!ir-~; c:an be transmitte~ to the termi-
nal m;lchilling tool rlore ef,iciently than other~vise, and that
since the tubular member is made of a flexible material, -the
cable is convenien-t for carrying out ultrasonic machinin~ o~er-
ations with the tool.
Lastly, although the present invention has been illustra-
ted and described with reference to i-ts preferred embodlments,
it is nevertheless not intended -to be limited thereto since
various modifications and changes mcly be made without departi-
n~ from the spirit and sco~e of the present invention.
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